Seven civil society organizations were awarded for their initiatives with an impact at the Civil Society Awards Gala 2023 that was staged with the European Union’s support. These are associations that over the past year contributed to strengthening democracy, connectivity and confidence, to promoting gender quality and innovation, to the economic and social development of the Republic of Moldova, IPN reports.
In the event, the Head of the EU Delegation in Chisinau Jānis Mažeiks spoke about the priorities in the cooperation with civil society organizations, noting that the EU will continue to invest in social services of a higher quality. “We are proud of the fact that alongside you, we are present in many localities of the Republic of Moldova and manage to lend a hand to improving the quality of life of vulnerable persons. We are proud of the expertise you have in such areas as good governance, justice sector reform and promotion of human rights. We are very glad that many of the social enterprises you initiated thanks to the EU’s support became profitable, having simultaneously a powerful social impact. In today’s event, we want to present the extraordinary results of the projects implemented by civil society organizations, including several stories that inspire,” stated the EU ambassador.
Attending the event, Prime Minister Dorin Recean spoke about the considerable role played by civil society in the obtaining of the EU candidate status and in the strengthening of the democratic processes in the country. “The citizens of the Republic of Moldova transmitted a clear pro-European message as they are sure that the place of the Republic of Moldova is in the European Union, alongside the countries that support and believe in the European project. They showed that they want to become actively involved in the protection of the rule of law. Civil society during these years played the role of democracy watchdog. The fact that we reached this point and are a candidate for EU membership is due to the considerable and consistent effort of civil society as well,” stated the Premier.
The award For Stronger Governance went to the Independent Think Tank “Expert-Grup” for the project “Inform, Empower, Act! Civil Society for Better Budgetary Governance in Moldova”.
The Association of Business Women from Balti municipality, which created the business support center Business Skills Hub, was award For a Stronger Economy.
The Association “Casa Speranţelor” received the award For a Stronger Society for creating the multifunctional social services center “A Chance” in Soroca, which is intended for about 100 children in situations of risk and with disabilities from the district.
The award For Stronger Connectivity went to the National Environmental Center for the project “School Garden” that was implemented in 12 educational institutions.
The project Wibe Academy, implemented in Cahul, was awarded For Change Promotion. This is a social enterprise that enables children from socially-deprived families, especially those from rural areas, to study robotics, 3D design, 3D printing, Photoshop, Adobe Illustarator etc.
The award For the Promotion of Gender Equality went to the association “Făclia” that provides career guidance, professional courses and training, employment and business launch assistance to women who survived domestic violence in 12 localities of the districts of Ungheni and Cahul.
The center “Vseznayka” based in Tighina town won the award For Confidence Building for providing personal, academic, emotional and social development services for children aged between 2 and 12.
The Civil Society Gala was launched in 2018, marking the perseverance, dedication, activism and creativity of civil society organizations of the Republic of Moldova in the identification of the most pressing problems at the local and national levels.
